Access Recreation New England

Access Recreation New England Access Rec New England is a platform for connecting people with disabilities with recreation opportunities & supporting professionals who make it happen!

HISTORY

Access Recreation New England was started in 2008 when a group of adaptive and therapeutic recreation providers kept bumping into each other at local events, realizing that they had much to share without quite the right forum. With a brief mention of the then "Greater Boston Access to Recreation" in a grant application, the Shapiro Foundation's interest was piqued. Acting as a connecting

force and providing meeting space and the occasional lunch, the Shapiro Foundation helped to give what is now Access Recreation Boston a solid place to start from. In the fall of 2011, Greater Boston Access to Recreation (GBAR) hosted its first event, a "speed networking" forum attended by 24 local professionals. It was one of the first events of its kind, bringing together adaptive recreation professionals from across the region in various sports, disciplines and disabilities served. The overarching call-to-action from this meeting was the demand to organize more formally and create a 'clearing-house' of recreational opportunities in the Greater Boston area. Since then, GBAR then names Access Recreation Boston has hosted eight conferences attended by as many as 85 professionals, with keynotes including Paralympic athletes Cheri Blauwet, Maureen McKinnon, Ernst Van Dyk, and Joe Walsh, and sessions ranging from grant writing and risk management to adaptive equipment and inclusion strategies. In 2019, the projects name was changed from Access Recreation Boston to its current name, Access Recreation New England. This better reflects the organizations who partner with ARNE and who benefit from us. Working closely with local professionals as well as the Boston Disability Task Force, we hear again and again the need for a single point of reference for individuals with disabilities to discover the multitude of local recreation opportunities already available. We hear how valuable it is to connect as a field, to know the people behind other programs in order to make the best referrals, and how programs want to improve the quality of their services in addition to expanding outreach.

03/17/2025

REquipment matters to the state of Massachusetts. This is the season where we make our case to the legislature. Please reach out to your state reps. Learn how at https://dmereuse.org/budget-season-advocacy



UCP of Western Massachusetts Stavros Center For Independent Living

03/17/2025

REquipment’s inventory is dependent on device donations and the time it takes to refurbish equipment. Browse our inventory or search by category or

03/17/2025

Advocates for Autism of Massachusetts (AFAM) welcomes you to join self-advocates, family members, caregivers and professionals supporting the autism community, as well as our elected and appointed officials as we honor two strong, steady legislative champions of the autism community: Representative....

03/17/2025

Registration is now open for the largest brain injury conference in Massachusetts – visit https://biama.org/annualconference/ to sign up today! Join us on March 26th & 27th for the 43rd Annual Brain Injury Conference, taking place at the Best Western Royal Plaza in Marlborough, MA.

Register by TOMORROW, March 7th to get the “Early Bird” rate! The registration deadline is March 21st. No walk-ins will be accepted this year, so be sure to register online by 3/21!

This event is for survivors, caregivers, family members, professionals, and community members to come together to learn about new developments in the field of brain injury and to network and connect with one another.

Questions can be sent to events@biama.org.

03/17/2025

Don't forget! REquipment is now accepting applications for the Jennifer Baker Memorial Scholarship.

This $1,000 scholarship honors our late program director, Jennifer Baker, who prized lifelong learning. The application deadline is April 1st, 2025.

Our scholarship supports a student pursuing a career related to assistive technology and durable medical equipment who values reuse to improve the lives of individuals with disabilities and older adults.

Learn more at dmeREuse.org/scholarship



Stavros Center For Independent Living UCP of Western Massachusetts

01/17/2025

CALLING ALL VETERANS! Adaptive Sports New England and the New England Patriots Wheelchair Football Team will be hosting a wheelchair football clinic at the Brockton VA on Friday, January 24. Come toss the pigskin around, try out a sports wheelchair and learn from real players, including New England Patriots alumni. Veterans, regardless of disability, are encouraged to register at https://form.jotform.com/242944519669068 for free.

Thank you to the VA Boston Healthcare System for their partnership on this event, and to the New England Patriots Foundation for their continued support of the team.

01/17/2025
Tune into the Paralympic Games starting today, August 28th to September 8th. There will be roughly 4,400 athletes compet...
08/28/2024

Tune into the Paralympic Games starting today, August 28th to September 8th. There will be roughly 4,400 athletes competing in 22 sports from around the world! They will be competing at a variety of iconic locations. You can go to the official website of the International Paralympic committee ( https://www.paralympic.org/paris-2024/sports ) to checkout the list of Athletes, sports and results!

Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Sports The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which will take place between 28 August and 8 September, will see more than 4,000 athletes from around the world competing in 549 medal events. The first Paralympic summer Games in the French capital will showcase 22 sports, includi...

07/08/2024

🕵Looking for a nature connection? 🌳🌿Want a multi-sensory immersive experience?? 👁👃🦻 Join DCR for a Sensory Trail Event at Mass Central Rail Trail-Sterling Spur!! 😁These programs are FREE and are for ALL ages and ALL abilities!!! 👩‍🦼🧑‍🦽🏃‍♀️🧑‍🦯

Meet/park at 25 Gates Rd., Sterling across from trailhead. This section of the trail is 3/4 mile round trip, is between two bodies of water (lots of birds🐦 and wildlife🐿) and there are benches and a portable toilet.

Check out this list of Sensory Walks: 👣

☀️Summer Sensory Walk, Friday, July 26 (10-11:30 a.m.)-Guided sensory walk with activities to celebrate summer.

🧚‍♀️Fairy Village and Gnome Homes, Saturday, Aug 10 ( 10 a.m.-12 p.m.)- An enchanted outing-fairy villages and gnome homes are hidden in the forest! And you can make your own fairy or gnome home!!

🦊Creatures of the Forest, October 5, (1-2 p.m.)-Explore what the wild things in the watershed are up to in autumn. Safely discover clues of tracks, s**t and other signs of wildlife!

Questions? Contact Kathryn.Parent@mass.gov or call 617- 352-4044.

🐾Get out to where the wild things are....

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200 Portland Street
Boston, MA
02114

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HISTORY Access Recreation Boston was started in 2008 when a group of adaptive and therapeutic recreation providers kept bumping into each other at local events, realizing that they had much to share without quite the right forum. With a brief mention of the then informal group in a grant application, the Shapiro Foundation's interest was piqued. Acting as a connecting force and providing meeting space and the occasional lunch, the Shapiro Foundation helped to give what is now Access Recreation Boston a solid place from which to start. In the fall of 2011, Access Rec (then GBAR) hosted its first event, a "speed networking" forum attended by 24 local professionals. It was one of the first events of its kind, bringing together adaptive recreation professionals from across the region in various sports, disciplines and disabilities served. The overarching call-to-action from this meeting was the demand to organize more formally and create a 'clearing-house' of recreational opportunities in the Greater Boston area. Since then, Access Rec Boston has hosted twice-yearly conferences attended by as many as 85 professionals, with keynotes including Paralympic athletes Cheri Blauwet, Maureen McKinnon, Ernst Van Dyk, and Joe Walsh, and sessions ranging from grant writing and risk management to adaptive equipment and inclusion strategies. Working closely with local professionals as well as the Boston Disability Task Force, we hear again and again the need for a single hub of information for individuals with disabilities to discover the multitude of local recreation opportunities already available. We hear how valuable it is to connect as a field, to know the people behind other programs in order to make the best referrals, and how programs want to improve the quality of their services in addition to expanding outreach.